A Chance Not Taken

When the news broke that Princess Kelly was killed in a car accident, Melissa’s hope of being reunited with David shone through her sadness and disappointment like a lighthouse finding a ship lost at sea. Her love for him blossomed once again in her heart. She hadn’t spoken to him since the day he broke up with her and announced his engagement to Kelly. She had tried to run from the heartache by moving to America, and he had pleaded with her to stay and be his mistress, but she’d refused. She knew he still loved her. His eyes couldn’t deny the light she’d brought to them that spring afternoon when they stopped on the stone bridge under the flowering wisteria trees to share their first kiss.

She felt guilty over being cheerful despite the tragic death of her distant cousin. Yet, she blamed Kelly for her own fate. If she hadn't maliciously stolen David from her, maybe tragedy wouldn't have consumed her, now. Kelly could have had anyone she wanted, except for her beloved cousin's man. However, Kelly had been seething with envy for Melissa’s joy and joviality with having fallen in love for the first time. And David had let temptation and social status put him in her arms.

She was sure David would contact her soon. They needed each other now. Despite her reservations, she’d welcome him with open arms and a kiss to make up for all the lost memories and moments.

“Hello Cara,” she said, putting her cellphone on speaker.

“Did you see the story “The ShadowSide Tribune” has spun around Princess Kelly’s death?”

“No.”

“I have a copy. I’m on my way over there now.”

Cara was her hair stylist and best confidant. There was nothing Melissa couldn't tell her.

They sat on the bar stools in the kitchen with the frontpage headline “Will Jaded Cousin Get Her Man Afterall?” staring at them.

“I’ve already read it.” Cara said, taking a sip of her coffee.

"The author wrote that he has a source who believes you could have had a play in the accident. The source told the author that you had purchased a handgun from him the day after David broke up with you and announced his engagement to Kelly."

“Well, they can shove it. I had nothing to do with it.”

“I would never in a million years think you did.”

When Cara left, Melissa sat down at her vanity.

“Damn it!” she said, pounding her fist onto the vanity. Although she had purchased a gun and wished her cousin dead, she would never have gone through with it. She couldn’t believe her secret was now gracing the newsprint, however, disreputable it was.

David would not likely contact her now. If she could turn time back, she’d never have bought that gun. When she slid the stool back from the vanity, she noticed the sunlight sparkling off something underneath it. She saw the silver chain to a necklace and picked it up. A light-blue topaz heart dangled from it. She’d only ever seen her mother wearing it once. Looking closer, she noticed it was a locket and unhooked the tiny clasp. Inside, was a clock face with gold circles where the numbers would have been. After clasping the necklace around her neck, she gently rubbed the diamond in the center of the clock. The gold hands started to rapidly move in reverse, and she grasped the back of the stool to prevent herself from falling down when the dizziness overcame her.

Melissa’s eyes fluttered open when the morning sun found her face. She couldn’t believe it. The cream canopy bed she was lying in was hers, but from three years ago. Her hand flew to her chest when she became aware that today she purchased the gun. When she found the necklace around her neck, she knew it had transported her into the past. But why? What was she to do with the gift of going back in time to correct a mistake? She found herself eating the same breakfast and wearing the same clothes, she had three years ago. Moreover, she felt like she was in a dream where she couldn’t change her circumstances no matter how hard she tried. She didn't want to buy the gun.

Two hours later, she was on her way to purchase the gun. She sat on a park bench rubbing the pendant and thinking of Kelly riding her horse on the palace grounds, when the dawn chased away the night. It would be her only opportunity to get her beloved back. She couldn't bear to be in the same country as her heartless cousin. Her cheeks flushed hot when she thought of winning him back by wearing sexy, revealing dresses and dating other men as if his break-up with her didn't bother her a bit. She had a great body and deserved to flaunt it. Something her more conservative relatives would disapprove of.

She tried to convince herself that Kelly deserved to die. Who ruthlessly betrayed the one’s they loved? She hid behind the forest’s undergrowth and waited for her moment. However, when Kelly appeared on her white horse, instead of pulling the trigger, Melissa yanked the necklace from her neck and threw it deep into the forest. A dizziness overcame her, then. And when she opened her eyes, she was lying on the bedroom floor in her California home. All she could remember was Cara visiting a few hours earlier.

She called Cara to make a hair appointment for next week. When she mentioned Kelly’s death, Cara had no idea what she was talking about. She quickly said goodbye and did an online search for the accident. Her eyes widened when she saw the Queen wearing the blue topaz necklace. It hadn't all been a dream.

When all the hope that had recently showered her shattered into a million splintered shards, she regretted not having pulled the trigger after she had been given a second chance. Tears wet her eyes, and her heart ached like never before. The only comfort she had, now, was knowing that the world would never know about her revengeful secret. It could cause her to lose her noble status and future inheritances. Moreover, she would be hounded by reporters and journalists for her to tell her tale, which had an inkling of an appeal to her.